It wasn’t until I had my third baby, Cayson, that I really understood how important it was to take care of myself. It took me months to start getting clothes on and going to the gym after both my daughter and my older son were born. But since I already had two children with busy schedules when Cayson arrived, I didn’t have the option to stop. I was forced to get up and move and start doing stuff a week after I had Cayson. I was working again. I was going to the gym. And it was amazing how good I felt! Here’s what I’m doing to stay fit and healthy now that I have three children.

1. Make time for myself without the kids. It should be a necessity, not a luxury. It’s healthy for kids to play with other children, or play with someone else for an hour, so you can get out and do what you need to do. It’s so important mentally and physically. A healthy mom is a happy mom!

2. Exercise in the morning (when I can). I get the older kids out the door for school, and then I have a babysitter that comes over to stay with the baby while I take a spin class. By 9 a.m. I’m home. I’ve had my workout. It makes my head clear. I feel good and I feel strong.

3. Fit exercise in whenever you can. When I can’t get out of the house, I have my kids help me work out at home. Ava will count my reps, and Beckett will hand me my weights. Even if it’s just doing sit-ups during commercial breaks of a kids’ show, something is better than nothing.

4. Buy food that’s already prepped. I get cut up fruits and veggies and meat that’s ready to throw in the Crockpot or on a pan or in the oven, so we can still eat healthy even when I’m time crunched. Meal prep is easy; I don’t have to cook anything from scratch.

5. Get rid of the unhealthy snacks. I used to use my kids as an excuse to keep junk food around. I’d say, “Oh, but Ava loves when she can have a Twinkie for dessert.” But I just had to stop doing that and think, “If I don’t want to eat it then I don’t want them to eat it.” Now we only have healthy snacks, like fruit and yogurt and crackers and cheese.

Melissa Rycroft is a reality TV actress who is known for starring in the most watched finale of all time on “The Bachelor,” as well as performing on “Dancing with the Stars.” She was also co-host of the reality TV show “Red Neck Island,” in 2014 and 2015. And, she's worked as a contributor for “Good Morning America.” In May, Rycroft welcomed her third child, son Cayson, and she's been busy consulting for the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders (Rycroft is a former member of the squad).

In June of 2012, Simon & Schuster published her autobiography My Reality, in which Rycroft reveals the ups and downs of her life to that point, from joining the cast of “The Bachelor” to her time on “Dancing with the Stars” to falling back in love with her sweetheart Tye and becoming a mother.

Melissa married her longtime sweetheart, Tye Strickland, in a seaside ceremony in Mexico in 2009. The couple resides in Dallas, Texas, with their three children: Ava, 5; Beckett, 2; and Cayson, 3 months.